According to Auburn Planning Department principal planner Justin Steinnman,
the plan proposes to make improvements from the start of Opelika Road on Gay Street to the road's city limits.
Changes include making the street more aesthetically appealing, friendlier to pedestrians and bicyclists and more attractive to new businesses.
Opelika Road has been broken up into three areas for the plan: from Gay Street to Dean Road, Dean Road to East University Drive and East University Drive to the city limits.
One way Renew Opelika Road is trying to attract new businesses is by updating the zoning code. The zoning code dictates what type of buildings can be built in certain areas of the city.
"Right now, the zoning only allows, in pretty large portions of the corridor, commercial development," Steinnman said. "It doesn't allow mixed use development. It has pretty stringent set backs, especially on the front [near Gay Street.]"
Mixed-use development would allow a combination of residential, commercial, cultural or industrial uses. This zoning would reduce distances between housing, workplaces and retail businesses.
The first projects under Renew Opelika Road will bookend the street, focusing on the section between Gay and Ross streets, and the East University Drive-Opelika Road intersection near the mall.
"We're really looking at doing two projects on either end of the corridor to help improve traffic flow on the Opelika side," Steinnman said. "But also to make aesthetic improvements and pedestrian improvements on both areas to help demonstrate some of the things we would like to see on the corridor."
The city is working with individual business owners to make a positive impact.
There are currently 23 acres of vacant buildings and 64 acres of vacant land the project plans to fill, according to the Renew Opelika Road Corridor Plan on the city's website.
Mekenzie Hargaden, sophomore in pre-vet who lives in the off-campus housing complex Creekside on Opelika Road, is excited about the idea of new businesses that may come with the Renew Opelika Road project.
"We go to Chili's a lot, and Cancun's," Hargaden said. "If there were more restaurants and stores conveniently on Opelika, yeah, that would be great."
The community can expect some lane closures, but there will not be any four-lane closures that require detours, according to Steinnman.
On April 8, the city will have a public meeting to review the proposed changes to the public.
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